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What is tafsir?

ما التفسير؟

Tafsir is the disclosure of the meanings of the Quran, its occasions of revelation and its rulings. Its written heritage runs from al-Tabari, al-Zamakhshari, al-Razi and Ibn Kathir to the modern age.

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Scripture and its sciences

Overview

Tafsir is the explanation of the meanings of the Qur'an, its occasions of revelation and its rulings. Its literature has been recorded from al-Tabari, al-Zamakhshari, al-Razi and Ibn Kathir down to the modern age. 1

People and things also explored

The seven ahruf· Hadith· Shama'il Muhammadiyya· The Prophetic sira· The Prophetic Sunna· Command, prohibition and capacity· The Sunna as explanation of the Qur'an· Bid'a (religious innovation)

Sources

  1. Wikidata
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “What is tafsir?”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/questions/what-is-tafsir/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-22.

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Related

The seven ahruf

The Prophet's saying 'the Qur'an was revealed in seven ahruf, so read of it what is easy' — narrated through Umar's dispute with Hisham ibn Hakim over Surat al-Furqan; its exact meaning is one of the widest debates in Qur'anic sciences.